A 24-year-old woman claims she was denied entry at a New York Starbucks because of her service dog.
Amy Kaplan, who two years ago suffered a traumatic brain injury, stopped by the Starbucks in Brighton on Sunday to get a Frappuccino after walking her dog named Zero.
"Get Out," an employee allegedly told Kaplan, who also has bipolar disorder. Kaplan began recording what happened next.
"Are you denying me access because of my service dog?" Kaplan said in a video of the incident she uploaded on YouTube.
"No, I'm not," the employee replied. "I'm telling you that you cannot come in with your service dog."
Kaplan sustained her injury when the ambulance she was working in as an emergency responder collided with a bus, according to the Democrat & Chronicle. Zero helps her with anxiety as well as memory issues, such as if she forgets where her apartment is or where she parked her car.
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, a business that is open to the public cannot deny access to customers with service animals. Service animals also don't require documentation of their purpose and don't have to wear a vest.
When the employee said the dog had no ID and no vest on, Kaplan reminded him she is not obligated to prove Zero is a service dog.
"Service dog handlers should not have to be subjected to this illegal and discriminatory behavior just because we require the use of a service dog for a disability," Kaplan wrote in a post accompanying the video. "It is the business' responsibility to know the law."
Starbucks spokeswoman Laurel Harper told the Democrat & Chronicle the company attempted to contact Kaplan on Monday to apologize. Harper said employees are instructed to only ask if an animal is for service purposes and to serve them if they answer, "yes."
"It's unfortunate that this happened," Harper said. "Ms. Kaplan did have an experience that's absolutely inconsistent with our values and our service animal policy."